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Psychology in Organizations: The Social Identity Approach
S. Alexander Haslam Sage 432 pp.
ISBN 0-7619-6157-7 (cloth)/ 0-77619-6158-5 (paper) L55.00 (cloth)/L18.99 (paper) Keywords Groups, Social identity theory
In this book Alexander Haslam sets out to write about key organizational issues from a very different perspective. Rather than the individualist approach taken by most writers, he discusses organizational phenomena using group processes as the basis for explanation. In doing so he hopes to right the wrongs done to groups in organizations, where they are often seen as an unwelcome thing.
The first two chapters lay the groundwork: Chapter one reacquaints the reader with traditional paradigms for the study of organizations, such as Taylorism and the human relations approach; Chapter two introduces social identity theory. Perhaps introduces is not quite the right word as social identity theory has been around for many years. However, this might be the first time some students of organizational behaviour, who do not have a grounding in social psychology, will have come across it as it is rarely referred to...